The budget reaches out far and wide with well-crafted messages

It is not that there has been no attempt to send out a message to the numerically strong constituency of women, who seem to be emerging as a vote bank for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in many states, but the budget does not seem to target specific groups like the youth or voters of a particular caste. It appears to treat the poor as a new ‘caste,’ one that also seems to have become a vote bank for the BJP in recent elections. While the budget’s announcements show the government’s continued efforts to send out positive signals to women voters—that the Modi government cares more for them than any other party—the interim budget is largely aimed at addressing a much larger section of people rather than different segments like the youth, farmers, etc, as was expected.

There are a few things that are indicative of the government trying to send out welfare messages for a much larger population. In a subtle way, it tried to address the concerns of the poor and lower-income groups, rather than the country’s middle classes. Income tax slabs could have passed for routine and permissible in an interim budget, but no change was made. Maybe the government and BJP feel assured of middle- class votes, as a large number seemed mesmerized by the inauguration of the much-awaited Ram Mandir at Ayodhya. Massive celebrations in many states could explain why the BJP is confident of reaping its electoral gains.

Although people from lower-income homes, including poor voters, also seemed pleased with the temple’s construction, the BJP would not have wanted to miss any chance of sending out signals to India’s poor that it is the BJP which cares most for them. Such an intent was evident in various announcements of the budget speech, whether it is the promise to construct 20 million more houses under Prime Minister Awas Yojana in the next five years, or about providing 300 units of free electricity generated by solar plants to 10 million households. The mention of extending India’s free-ration scheme for another five years to help ease the daily struggle of hundreds of millions is indicative of that. The budget’s outlay emphasis on infrastructure and transport corridors points to a direction of development that caters to people across various sections.

As part of that inclusivity message, the government indicated its commitment to strengthen the health sector, even as the finance minister highlighted the government’s achievements in this sector, especially on fighting covid. An expansion plan for the health sector has been laid out, probably to signal that all sections of society are being looked after, as health remains a concern for a large section of people, cutting across identities of caste, religion, gender, class, etc. The budget also made a commitment to providing enhanced facilities to all aanganwadi workers under the Aayushman Bharat scheme.

In the overall analysis, one can’t deny the fact that through these budget announcements, the government has tried to position the Modi government as being at the forefront of women’s welfare. The emphasis is clear from the statements made. The finance minister announced a new scheme of preventive vaccination of girls between the ages of nine to 14 years, to safeguard them from cervical cancer. The government also extended its target for extending the benefit of the Lakhpati Didi scheme to 30 million women, compared with its earlier commitment of reaching 20 million women. One can hardly deny that this is not aimed at mobilizing a vast base of women voters who constitute nearly 50% of total voters in various states. It is also important to note that the BJP and other parties have recognized the rising importance of women voters in Indian elections, as they are not only turning out to vote in larger numbers, but also getting mobilized in favour of the party that helps out with welfare schemes, whether it’s the Ladali Behana scheme of the erstwhile Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in Madhya Pradesh (MP) or the Ujjawala scheme of the current Modi government.

There is also an effort to reach out to farmers with the message that the Modi government is committed to their welfare and shares their concerns. The announcement of direct financial assistance to 118 million small and marginal farmers is also a move in that direction.

Overall, these announcements hint at the government’s confidence of coming back to power in 2024. This is understandable, given several factors. On one hand, there’s Modi’s popularity, the BJP’s increased support base and euphoria over the temple in Ayodhya. On the other hand, there’s Congress debacle in the three Hindi heartland states of MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh and the opposition’s inability to remain united so that it can put up common candidates against the BJP.

These are the author’s personal views.